The European Commission’s previous roaming charge policy would allow wireless customers to roam for up to 90 days per year with a maximum of 30 consecutive days. Only domestic prices would be charged. Skeptics say that this policy would not be friendly to consumers who frequently cross over into other countries, Reuters reported. Therefore, the Commission is rethinking the initial plan, proposing no “time limits on charge-free mobile phone roaming” in next year’s plan. Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker ordered the re-proposal two weeks ago, seeking more public support after Brexit.
Andrus Ansip, European Commission vice president for the digital single market, said in a news conference that “there would no longer be a formal limit on surcharge-free roaming when new rules enter force in June, 2017,” according to Reuters. Under the new proposal, operators can check consumer usage patterns so there is no system abuse in terms of buying additional SIM cards in one EU country and then using it elsewhere. The burden of proof, Reuters noted, will be on companies like Vodafone and Deutsche Telekom.
Additionally, if customers use their phones more in other countries than their home countries, operators could apply roaming charges. And, if a customer uses multiple SIM cards when traveling, roaming charges would apply, but customers could challenge this surcharge if warranted. However, surcharges, Reuters reported, “would not apply to travelers using SIM cards from countries in which they reside or with which they have a ‘stable link,’’ which could include work commuters, expats frequently in their home country or exchange students.”
Roaming charges currently only account for about three to six percent of revenue for companies. Reuters said that operators could get permission from the Commission to apply roaming charges “if they stand to lose at least five percent of their mobile revenues when providing ‘roam like at home.’”
The price of the surcharge is now in the hands of the European Parliament and member states and will be announced in 2017. After regulatory feedback, the Commission’s proposal would go into effect December 15, of this year.
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